1. Field Of The Invention
The present invention relates to small arms projectiles and more particularly relates to an improved small arms projectile for use in but not limited to semiautomatic pistols, shotguns, revolvers, rifles, carbines, submachine guns as well as light and heavy machine guns. Even more particularly, the present invention relates to an improved small arms projectile that incapacitates more efficiently as compared to existing expanding projectiles and features a conically shaped forward section of the projectile and a cylindrically shaped rear section wherein the projectile carries a plurality of circumferentially spaced curved ribs mounted upon a concave annular surface portion of the forward section of the projectile.
2. General Background
There are various types and calibers of small arms bullets such as .45 caliber, 10 millimeter, .40 caliber and 9 millimeter. Pistol bullets, for example, are available in various forms including ball ammunition using a full metal jacket round nose configuration with a lead core. There is also available a truncated cone full metal jacket pistol bullet with a blunt tip and a lead core. Jacketed hollow point pistol bullets provide a lead core and there are also available and known jacketed soft lead point pistol bullets with a lead core.
The full metal jacket round nose bullets have been in use since the advent of the first semi-automatic pistols in the late 1800's and in the early 1900's. The round nose configuration was derived primarily to facilitate reliable feeding and function in magazine charged semi-automatic pistol. Little if any thought was then given to terminal-ballistic bullet effects.
Truncated cone full metal jacket pistol bullets have a blunt tip. They originated shortly after the full metal jacket round nose bullets around 1906. The German army adopted the nine millimeter luger cartridge with a truncated cone full metal jacket bullet about six years later. The rational for the blunt nose was to deliver more kinetic energy to a target upon impact. The outer corner of the truncated cone bullet tip is radiused for reliable feeding.
Jacketed hollow point pistol bullets were developed after World War II. They were designed with the idea that the hollow cavity within the lead core would upon impact cause the bullet to expand, thereby creating an enlarged wound cavity or channel. Jacketed hollow point bullets have a blunt nose profile similar to full metal jacket truncated cone bullets. The jacket on a hollow point bullet extends around the outer diameter of the tip in a radius to insure reliable feeding.
The jacketed soft lead point pistol bullets are configured the same as full metal jacketed round nose projectiles. The soft lead point is thought to facilitate expansion of the bullet upon impact with a target. However, reliable feeding has been a problem with soft point bullets when used in magazine charged weapons.
Recently, law enforcement officers have adopted semi-automatic pistols with greater fire power in that they carry a magazine holding between eight and seventeen rounds. These semi-automatic pistols are gradually replacing the more traditional six shot revolvers. A U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation Advisory Committee recently conducted an evaluation of semi-automatic pistols and presented findings relative to the terminal incapacitation effectiveness of nine millimeter and .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol ammunition. In summary, their conclusions found that because of the low velocities at which current pistol projectiles travel, jacketed hollow point bullets cannot be expected to reliably expand over the broad spectrum of law enforcement shooting situations. Further, if hollow point projectiles do expand upon surface impact, they cannot be relied upon to adequately penetrate to reach vital organs.
The established shortcomings of existing commercially available pistol projectiles as regards their ability to effectively incapacitate human targets over the broad spectrum of shooting situations that are frequently encountered by those in the law enforcement and military communities are well documented.
Various projectiles have been patented which disclose projectile constructions such as Kriesel U.S. Pat. No. 3,752,250 , the European patent 346,779 and the Canadian patent 577,406 to Whipple. The Kriesel patent 3,572,250 is directed to a cone for an aeroballistic missile, the main function of which is to prevent undue penetration when a missile enters the earth at a relatively high velocity. The shape of the cone allows easy initial penetration of the missile, but prevents undue penetration and allows the cone to stand erect during use.
Another patent disclosing a projectile with a configuration different than the above discussed commercially available ammunition is the French patent 427,713 .
3. General Discussion Of The Present Invention
The present invention provides an improved small arms projectile which provides a substantial increase in area of sharp edges on the forward section of the projectile using fins with rearwardly tapering leading surfaces to produce more severe cuts and lacerations in a target wound channel thereby causing profuse bleeding.
The present invention causes the bullet to spin upon launch from a smooth bore gun barrel through the use of curved fins at the tip extremity. Projectile stability is achieved because of the spinning effect. The plurality of curved fins produce a more optimal penetration capability of the bullet into barrier and target mediums, causing a decreased tendency of the fins to shear from the bullet frontal extremity due to bullet rotation. The bullet fins can also be curved in a direction which compliments gun barrel rifling and thus offers less atmospheric resistance to the flight of the bullet.
Vertical concave fin surfaces in combination with the curved surfaces separating the fins effect a dramatic increase in the radially directed outward flow of target mass (blood, tissue and bone particles) into the target wound channel as compared to prior art projectiles, thereby enlarging the cuts and lacerations in the wound channel made by the sharp leading edges of the fins, which causes profuse bleeding.
The present invention provides an improved small arms projectile having a main body with a central longitudinal axis which is cylindrical and of a first larger diameter. The projectile body also includes a front body section with a smaller diameter flat front end connected integral with the main body section and having a gradually decreasing diameter between the end connected to the main body section and the flat front end.
The front body section has a concave and circumferentially extending annular surface and a plurality of circumferentially spaced curved ribs or fins which are positioned on the front body section, each extending between the main body section and the flat front end portion. Each of the ribs or fins has outermost edges. Spaced apart concave and convex rib side surfaces define the curvature and thickness of each rib. The curved ribs each extend between the concave annular surface and the outermost edges.
The ribs generate a preferably frustro-conical shape during rotation of the projectile about its central longitudinal axis. The ribs are equally spaced circumferentially about the central longitudinal axis.
Each rib preferably has a plurality of outermost intersecting surfaces including a diagonally extending linear flat surface, and a surface intersecting the diagonal surface which is an extension of the outer surface of the cylindrical main body section. A second flat outermost surface is perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis and communicates with the flat end portion, forming a plane therewith.
The concave annular surface has a curvature that gradually increases in a fore to aft direction, which can be a partial parabolic or elliptic shape.